That synthesizer at the jump? Ice-cold and perfect. The opening tune from Steely Dan’s best work, “Black Cow” is the ultimate first chapter of Aja. If you disagree with what we’ve got to say, well, hey, that’s showbiz! We don’t make the rules we just put ‘em in order, baby. If you’re new to Steely Dan, may we suggest ensconcing yourself in the burning glow of their discography? To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the band’s final chapter, we’ve ranked their 25 best songs. This article is going to be a long, strange, unforgettable trip. So throw on your Aja bootleg sweatpants, crank “Dirty Work” to full-volume in your car like Tony Soprano and bask in the drug-soaked affections of West Hollywood and the characters who call it home. I’m sorry to report that none of us, no matter how hard we try, will ever outrun the Dan. And perhaps you have long tried to resist the oozing, fractured beauty of Steely Dan and the imperfect humanity they embellished across their albums. I mean, seven perfect-or near-perfect-albums released in succession? It’s hard to argue against it. No band has ever come out the gates like that. No matter how you feel about that record-or whether or not you think it should have won Album of the Year over Kid A-it marked a triumphant, admirable return for Fagen and Becker.īut Everything Must Go would mark a (fittingly titled) end for the duo, who’d set rock ‘n’ roll ablaze with one of the best seven-album runs you’ll ever see: Can’t Buy a Thrill, Countdown to Ecstasy, Pretzel Logic, Katy Lied, The Royal Scam, Aja and Gaucho. Eventually, they would release the Grammy-winning LP Two Against Nature. They each let out some solo roars before reuniting for gigs in 1993. After putting out Gaucho in 1980, the boys went their separate ways for a brief time.

Donald Fagen and Walter Becker had enjoyed an off-and-on 30-year career, producing some of the greatest records of all-time. 20 years ago today, Steely Dan-the godfathers of yacht rock and ancestors of sleaze-released Everything Must Go, a project that would become their ninth and final album.

Wurlitzer organ orbit 3 synthesizer